Why the 'Hard Problem of Consciousness' Is a Misguided Philosophical Construct
By
ahalbert4
14d ago· 13 min readenOpinion
95/100
Golden Brown
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Toasted golden, schmeared with insight. Top of the rack.
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Summary
This article argues that the "hard problem of consciousness" — the idea that subjective experience cannot be explained by physical processes — is a misguided philosophical construct rooted in human resistance to scientific progress. Drawing parallels to historical resistance against Darwin's theory of evolution, the author contends that consciousness is not separate from the physical world, and that our "soul" is of the same nature as our body and any other phenomenon in the world. The piece challenges dualistic thinking and advocates for a fully materialist understanding of consciousness.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledWe humans are often scared by anything that may disturb our image of ourselves.
Darwin's realization that we have common ancestors with all living organisms on our planet met ferocious resistance.
The cultural history of modernity is dotted by similar ideological rearguard battles, wherein old worldviews fight in retreat against novel knowledge to save some con
Consciousness is not separate from the physical world — our “soul” is of the same nature as our body and any other phenomenon of the world.

